PESHAWAR: Pakistan’s military said on Thursday it killed eight militants near the Afghan border in North Waziristan a day earlier, as tensions between the two countries persist following a sharp escalation in cross-border violence since February.
The operation comes amid reports of Pakistani and Afghan officials holding talks in the Chinese city of Urumqi, part of ongoing efforts to ease tensions that have festered between them amid intense border clashes and Pakistani airstrikes deep inside its neighboring countries.
Islamabad says it has been targeting militant groups and their infrastructure while accusing Afghanistan and India of harboring and backing the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which it refers to as “Fitna Al Khwarij.”
The term comes from early Islamic history and is used for an extremist sect that rebelled against authority. Kabul and New Delhi both deny the allegations.
“On 1 April 2026, movement of a group of khwarij along Pakistan-Afghanistan border in North Waziristan District was picked up by the security forces,” the military’s media wing, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), said in a statement.
“Own troops effectively engaged this group of khwarij. As a result of precise and skillful engagement, eight khwarij belonging to Indian proxy, Fitna al Khwarij were sent to hell. Weapons and ammunition were also recovered from Indian sponsored killed Khwarij,” it added.
The military said the operation had once again proved Pakistan’s stance over cross-border militancy, adding it also showed Afghan Taliban’s “abject failure” to ensure effective border management and prevent militants from using Afghan soil to launch attacks inside Pakistan.
ISPR noted Pakistani security forces were resolute and unwavering in their commitment to defend the country.
It said its broader counterterrorism campaign against the TTP and other militant outfits would continue “at full pace to wipe out the menace of foreign sponsored and supported terrorism from the country.”
